Musical toy

ABSTRACT

A musical toy which resembles a record player with a rotary record having a particular pattern of holes into which marbles may be placed. The record is placed on the special player mechanism and marbles are placed in the holes in the record. When the record is rotated the marbles drop through guide holes in the top of the player and strike tone plates in a particular sequence to produce different musical tunes depending upon the arrangement of the holes in the record. Different interchangeable records having different hole patterns may be provided with each player unit.

United States Patent 1951 Goldman......... .......l...r 84/94 84/102 X Carl E. Postel lnventor 2942 Clearview Ave., Canton, Ohio 44718 5 1,816

1956 Weinstein....................

A musical toy which resembles a record [21 Appl. No [22] Filed July 2,4970 [45] Patented June 29, 1971 [54] MUSICAL TOY 14 Claims, 3 Drawing Figs.

ABSTRACT: player with a rotary record having a particular pattern of holes into which marbles may be placed. The record is placed on the spew w 4/ /M 4 8 d G c u & L U h N H 5 5 Gmf 1/08 cial player mechanism and marbles are placed in the holes in l 34/9799' the record. When the record is rotated the marbles drop player and strike tone produce different musical tunes depending upon the arrangement of the holes in the through guide holes in the top of the plates in a particular sequence to (56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS record Different interchangeable records having different hole patterns may be provided with each player unit.

PATENTEU JUN29 1971 INVENTOR. CA RL POSTEL ATTORNEY MUSICAL TOY PRIOR ART The closest prior art known to applicant are U.S. Pat. No. 1,586,769 issued to M. W. Askin, U.S. Pat. No. 2,383,305 issued to J. Greene, U.S. Pat. No. 2,504,632 issued to N. P. Blair, U.S. Pat. No. 2,955,502 issued to .l. V. Ventura, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,002,3l3 issue to S. M. Hutchison.

The Askin and Greene patents show marbles passing down guide ramps and striking a series of tone plates to produce musical notes. Hutehison shows a coin bank in which coins dropped into the bank strike tone bars to produce musical notes. Ventura and Blair show the typical belt type music box in which the belt carries an arrangement of members which pluck tone producing fingers.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION An important object of the invention is to provide a musical toy which can be easily operated by young children who cannot yet read or manipulate mechanically complex toys.

Another object of this invention is to provide a toy which is simple to manufacture and durable in construction.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a toy which develops coordination and manual dexterity in small children.

These and other objects of the invention will become more fully apparent as the description proceeds in the following specification and the attached drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the invention shown in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view taken on line 3-3 of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now to the drawings, the device may be described in broadest terms as a record player I with a record 2 rotatably mounted thereon. The record player 1 is constructed in a hollow box like configuration having a flat base sheet 3, a pair of substantially identical sidewalls 4 fastened to the base I and a perforate top sheet 5 fastened to the sidewalls 4. The base sheet 3, the top sheet 5 and the record 2 are all made from a relatively thin but stiff material such as wood, composition board or plastic. The sidewalls 4 are made thicker to provide added strength and rigidity. The top sheet or panel 5 has a curved extension 6 which protrudes beyond the end walls 4 at the rear of the record player with the curvature conforming substantially to the curvature of the record 2. The top 5 has a centrally located pivot pin 7 which receives the center hole 8 of the record 2. When positioned pin 7, the record 2 rests on a pair of bearing posts 9 and on a friction drive roller 10 which is rotatably attached to one of the side walls 4. The drive roller 10 is fastened with a screw 11 to the sidewall 4 and carries crank 12 for turning the roller. Thus it may be seen that the bearing posts 9 and the roller 10 provide a three point support for the record 2 to hold it above the surface of the top panel 5 and the pivot pin 7 provides a center guide for the record to rotate about when the drive roller 10 is turned.

The base 3 has a plurality of tone plates 13a, 13b, 13c, 13d, 13e and 13f mounted thereon in a conventional manner with each plate being at a different relative radial distance from the pivot pin 7 on the top 5. As may best be seen in FIG. 3 the plates 13c and 13d are both resting on pads or washers 14 adjacent each end thereof and are held in place by conventional pins or rivets 15. The washers 14 may be felt or foam rubber. A hole 16 may be provided in the base 3 below each of the ue plates to produce a better tonal quality. A pair of feet 17 an: attached to the base 3 at the rear the record player 2 to cause the base to slope downward toward the front for retrieval of marbles used with the record player as will be explained later.

A plurality of guide holes 18a, 18b, 18c, 18d, 18e and 18f are positioned in the top panel 5 directly above the similarly numbered tone plates 13a through 13]". The record 2 has a plurality of holes 19a through 19f which are of the same size as the holes 8a through 18f and when the record 2 is started at the proper position and rotated one complete revolution, all of the 19 series holes will register with at least one of the 18 series holes. In other words, during one complete revolution of the record each of the 19 series holes will have passed over one of the 18 series holes that is located on a common radius with it.

Any number of records 2 can be used with the record player I with each different record having a different sequence of holes 19a through 19] depending upon what song is on the record, the location of the holes being determined by the notes of the song and the timing sequence thereof.

In operation, a record 2 is placed on the player I and turned to the proper starting position which is indicated by matching the point of the arrowhead 20 on the record with the point of the arrowhead 21 on the player 1. This positions the record 2 in the proper circumferential relationship to the player 1 so that the holes 19a through 19f are in the proper relationship to the holes 18a through 18f. A marble or ball 22 is then placed in each of the holes 19a through l9fwith the balls all resting on the top'surfaee of the top panel 5. It may be seen that the curved extension 6 of the top 5 supports the balls 22 that are positioned in the portion of the record which extends beyond the rear of the player 1. The balls may be of wood, plastic or any suitable material and fit loosely in the holes 19a through l9fso they will roll easily when the record 2 is rotated. To play the record, the crank 12 is turned away from the operator in the clockwise direction causing the roller 10 to drive the record 2 in a counterclockwise direction. As the holes 19a through 19f sequentially come into register with the holes 18a through 18], the balls 22 drop through onto one of the tone plates 13a through 13f. Depending upon which tone plates are struck and the sequence in which they are struck, a different tune may be played with each different record used. Since the base panel 3 is inclined to slope toward the front of the player I, the balls roll back against a retaining bar 23 fastened to the sides 4. Since the top 5 terminates short of the bottom 3 at the front of the player, this provides an opening through which the balls 22 may be easily picked up for reuse.

It may be seen that this device may be easily operated by young preschool children who cannot yet read and write or do not know numbers. The operation requires only that they place the record in position on the player and fill all the holes with balls and then turn the crank to play the record.

Although the friction drive roller 10 has been shown herein as being one of the most practical and simple means of turning the record it should be understood that other drive means may be employed without departing from the scope of the invention. While the record 2 has been illustrated as a flat disc it may be molded in relief or embossed with decorative pictures, designs or other indicia thereon. It may for example carry pictures of the type which relate to the song on the record.

The basic concept of this invention may also be carried out by the use of a transversely moving belt instead of the disc shaped record. A number of different interchangeable belts may be provided to carry marbles or balls in a predetermined sequence and release them onto different tone plates to play a tune.

Another variation of the device might be to provide a master record which has concentric rows of holes around the entire record. With this type record the operator would not place marbles in all the available holes in the record but would selectively place balls in part of the holes in a particular pattern to produce the desired tune. This embodiment would of course be of more interest to an older child since it would require some planning and thought to set up a proper sequence of balls in the master record.

Various other changes and modifications may be made in the device shown herein without departing from the scope of the invention.

I claim:

LA musical toy comprising:

A. means supporting a plurality of tone members for producing different musical tones,

B. a fixed perforate sheet positioned above said tone members, said sheet having guide holes positioned substantially in alignment with each tone member,

C. a movable perforate sheet positioned above said fixed sheet and adapted to move in a predetermined path relative to the fixed sheet,

D. said movable sheet having a plurality of object positioningholes arranged in a predetermined pattern whereby upon movement of the moveable sheet in the predetermined path each of the object positioning holes will sequentially register with the guide holes of the fixed sheet,

E. a plurality of droppable objects loosely placed in the positioning holes of the movcable sheet and resting on the fixed sheet,

f. each of said objects adapted to move with the moveable sheet'until the respective positioning hole in which it is located comes into register with one of the guide holes,

when the record is rotatedthereon,

l. balls positioned in the holes in they record to drop through the top of the record player and strike the'tone plates when the holes in the record register with the holes in the top of the record player, and l 1 .1. means rotating the record to effect release of the balls onto the tone plates.

- 6. A musical toy asclaimed in. claim 5 including means to support the record is spaced relationship from the top of the record player.

7. A musical toy as claimed in claim 5 including record positioning indicator means for determining the proper circumthen to drop through the guide hole striking one of the v tone members thereby producing a musical tone, and

G. means moving-the moveable sheet in the predetermined path until it'complctes a cycle in which all of the position- .ing holes have registered with at least one of the guide holesto sequentially release all the droppable objects to strike the tone members.

2. A musical toy as claimed in claim l'wherein the movable sheet is a rotary discshaped member which rotates about a pivot pin on the fixed sheet.

3. A musical toy as claimed in claim it wherein the droppable objects are balls.

4. A musical toy as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means moving the movable sheet is a friction drive roller which is turned by a hand crank said drive roller engaging the lower side of the movable sheet.

5. A musical toy comprising:

A. a record player, i

B. a disc shaped record rcmovably positioned thereon,

c. said record player being a hollow boxlike configuration having a substantially flat top and bottom joined together by at least two sidewalls,

D. the bottom having a plurality of tone plates mounted thereon,

E. the top having a plurality of holes thcrethrough said holes being positioned directly above the tone plates with each hole corresponding to one ofthe tone plates,

F. a centrally located pivot pin extending upwardly from the top of the record player 6. thercccrd having a center hole for receiving the pivot pin when the record is placed on the player,

H. said record having a plurality of holes therethrough arranged in a predetermined pattern at various radial distances from the ccnter holc, said holes positioned to register with the holes in the top of the record player fcrential position for starting the record in relationship to the top of the record player. 7

8. A musical toy as claimed in claim 5 including means collecting the balls for reuse after each record has been played.

9. A musical toy as claimed in claim 5 wherein the means rotating the record is a crank operated friction roller which engages the lower surface of the record."

0. A musical toy comprising: A. a fixed perforate panel positioned substantially horizontally and having a plurality of holes therethrough,

B. a tone plate positioned below each hole in spaced rela-- tionship therefrom,

C. a rotatable panel positioned on "the fixed panel said rotatable panel having a plurality of holes therethrough arranged in a predetermined pattern to register with the holes in the fixed panel upon rotation of the rotary panel,

D. means rotating the rotatable panel, and

E. a plurality of spherical balls positioned in the holes of the rotatable panel which upon rotation of the panel will drop through the holes in the fixed panel and strike the tone plates to produce a musical tone.

11. A musical toy as claimed in claim 10 wherein the rotatable panel is a disc shaped member which may be removed from thefixed panel and replaced by another disc shaped member having a different hole pattern when it is desired to play a different tune on the toy.

12. A musical toy as claimed in claim 10 wherein the rotatablepancl is a disc shaped member having a plurality of concentric rows of uniformly spaced holes around the entire cireumfercncc of the disc shaped member whereby the operator of the toy may determine what tune is to be played by selectively positioning the balls in part of the available holes to provide the desired sequence of notes when the disc shaped member is rotated.

13. A musical toy as claimed in claim 10 wherein the rotatable panel rotates about a centrally located pivot pin on the fixed panel and the means rotating the panel is a friction roller engaging the lower side of the rotatable panel.

14. A musical toy as claimed in claim 10 including means to circumferentially position the rotatable panel in the proper starting position to provide the proper sequence of registry between the holes in the rotatable panel with the holes in the 

1. A musical toy comprising: A. means supporting a plurality of tone members for producing different musical tones, B. a fixed perforate sheet positioned above said tone members, said sheet having guide holes positioned substantially in alignment with each tone member, C. a movable perforate sheet positioned above said fixed sheet and adapted to move in a predetermined path relative to the fixed sheet, D. said movable sheet having a plurality of object positioning holes arranged in a predetermined pattern whereby upon movement of the moveable sheet in the predetermined path each of the object positioning holes will sequentially register with the guide holes of the fixed sheet, E. a plurality of droppable objects loosely placed in the positioning holes of the moveable sheet and resting on the fixed sheet, f. each of said objects adapted to move with the moveable sheet until the respective positioning hole in which it is located comes into register with one of the guide holes, then to drop through the guide hole striking one of the tone members thereby producing a musical tone, and G. means moving the moveable sheet in the predetermined path until it completes a cycle in which all of the positioning holes have registered with at least one of the guide holes to sequentially release all the droppable objects to strike the tone members.
 2. A musical toy as claimed in claim 1 wherein the movable sheet is a rotary disc shaped member which rotates about a pivot pin on the fixed sheet.
 3. A musical toy as claimed in claim 1 wherein the droppable objects are balls.
 4. A musical toy as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means moving the movable sheet is a friction drive roller which is turned by a hand crank said drive roller engaging the lower side of the movable sheet.
 5. A musical toy comprising: A. a record player, B. a disc shaped record removably positioned thereon, c. said record player being a hollow boxlike configuration having a substantially flat top and bottom joined together by at least two sidewalls, D. the bottom having a plurality of tone plates mounted thereon, E. the top having a plurality of holes therethrough said holes being positioned directly above the tone plates with each hole corresponding to one of the tone plates, F. a centrally located pivot pin extending upwardly from the top of the record player G. the record having a center hole for receiving the pivot pin when the record is placed on the player, H. said record having a pluraliTy of holes therethrough arranged in a predetermined pattern at various radial distances from the center hole, said holes positioned to register with the holes in the top of the record player when the record is rotated thereon, I. balls positioned in the holes in the record to drop through the top of the record player and strike the tone plates when the holes in the record register with the holes in the top of the record player, and J. means rotating the record to effect release of the balls onto the tone plates.
 6. A musical toy as claimed in claim 5 including means to support the record is spaced relationship from the top of the record player.
 7. A musical toy as claimed in claim 5 including record positioning indicator means for determining the proper circumferential position for starting the record in relationship to the top of the record player.
 8. A musical toy as claimed in claim 5 including means collecting the balls for reuse after each record has been played.
 9. A musical toy as claimed in claim 5 wherein the means rotating the record is a crank operated friction roller which engages the lower surface of the record.
 10. A musical toy comprising: A. a fixed perforate panel positioned substantially horizontally and having a plurality of holes therethrough, B. a tone plate positioned below each hole in spaced relationship therefrom, C. a rotatable panel positioned on the fixed panel said rotatable panel having a plurality of holes therethrough arranged in a predetermined pattern to register with the holes in the fixed panel upon rotation of the rotary panel, D. means rotating the rotatable panel, and E. a plurality of spherical balls positioned in the holes of the rotatable panel which upon rotation of the panel will drop through the holes in the fixed panel and strike the tone plates to produce a musical tone.
 11. A musical toy as claimed in claim 10 wherein the rotatable panel is a disc shaped member which may be removed from the fixed panel and replaced by another disc shaped member having a different hole pattern when it is desired to play a different tune on the toy.
 12. A musical toy as claimed in claim 10 wherein the rotatable panel is a disc shaped member having a plurality of concentric rows of uniformly spaced holes around the entire circumference of the disc shaped member whereby the operator of the toy may determine what tune is to be played by selectively positioning the balls in part of the available holes to provide the desired sequence of notes when the disc shaped member is rotated.
 13. A musical toy as claimed in claim 10 wherein the rotatable panel rotates about a centrally located pivot pin on the fixed panel and the means rotating the panel is a friction roller engaging the lower side of the rotatable panel.
 14. A musical toy as claimed in claim 10 including means to circumferentially position the rotatable panel in the proper starting position to provide the proper sequence of registry between the holes in the rotatable panel with the holes in the fixed panel. 